Waiting Game…BBFC hand over of games to the VSC said to be delayed, possibly until Christmas

Read more VSC and PEGI Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from gamesindustry.biz

The ghost of Christmas yet to come The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has admitted that complex technical points are behind the ongoing delay to legal implementation of PEGI age-ratings for video games in the UK. Negotiations between the Government, overseen personally by Culture Minister Ed Vaizey, the Video Standards Council, and the BBFC, are understood to be at a delicate stage. But sources familiar with the matter said there was optimism that the system could still be passed into law by Christmas. As revealed by GI.biz in January, a complicated debate over packaging regulations had thrown a spanner in the works, with the BBFC’s role in particular requiring definitive clarification. The main sticking point remains the issue of linear (i.e. trailer) content, which regulations require is rated by the BBFC.

Old Joke…Parliamentary committee resurrect the very old debate about Frankie Boyle’s Katie Price joke

Read more UK Parliament Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from dailymail.co.uk

The boss of Channel 4 has refused to apologise for airing a joke about Katie Price’s disabled son. At a heated parliamentary hearing, David Abraham was condemned for the decision to show it. But although he was repeatedly asked to apologise, he did not. Abraham said we only ever had satirical intent. The joke about the former glamour model Jordan’s son was made by Scottish comedian Frankie Boyle on his Tramadol Nights series last year. At a meeting of the Culture Media and Sport Committee, Tory MP Louise Bagshawe, repeated the joke and told Abraham: This is a disabled little boy we are talking about. I am bewildered you can sit here and say that it is challenging political correctness — and that you will not apologise to the little boy for having put him on a television programme in this context. Surely no cultural remit could ever possibly justify such a joke? Channel 4′s chairman Lord Burns, also at the hearing, said: Personally, if it has caused distress to the son, then obviously I’m very sorry.

Strings Attached…ASA clears daytime advert referring to ‘sex friends’

Read more ASA Watch at MelonFarmers.co.uk

See article from asa.org.uk

A TV ad for the film No Strings Attached broadcast on More4 between 13.30 and 14.30 on 11 February 2011, during the programme Deal or No Deal. The female character said I need someone who’s going to be in my bed, no strings attached and the male character replied I could do that. Two brief scenes showed the couple in bed together before on-screen text read CAN BEST FRIENDS … BE SEX FRIENDS?. One viewer challenged whether the ad had been inappropriately scheduled at a time when children might see it. Clearcast said the only overtly sexual statement in the ad was text that read CAN BEST FRIENDS … BE SEX FRIENDS? and that they had applied an ex-kids restriction which they considered appropriate to the content of the ad. They said they had no control over the final scheduling of the ad, but they understood it had been broadcast during the programme Deal or No Deal, which they did not consider to be a programme aimed at children. ASA Assessment: Complaint Not upheld The ASA considered that the ad reflected the premise of the film in which two adults, who initially attempted to maintain an exclusively sexual relationship, fell in love. We understood that some viewers would find the premise of the film and the reference to sex in the ad distasteful. However, we considered the ex-kids restriction was appropriate and concluded that the broadcaster had exercised its judgement in scheduling the ad correctly because it was unlikely to cause harm or distress to children under the age of 16 who saw it. We investigated the ad under BCAP Code rules 32.1 (Scheduling of Television and Radio Advertisements) and 32.3 (Under-16s) but did not find it in breach.